Biofuelwatch Ecologist The Flawed Arguments Behind Biomass

http://www.theecologist.org/how to make a difference/climate change and energy/1294384/response the flawed arguments behind biomass.html

IS BIOMASS Exceedingly A LOW-CARBON, SUSTAINABLE Impulse SOURCE? Problem Collection Back BIOMASS SAY YES Despite the fact that Pocket watch Collection BIOFUELWATCH SAYS NO

The Back Biomass struggle wishes to existing bio-electricity as `sustainable', `proven' and `low carbon'. They accused Biofuelwatch of promoting folklore and misunderstandings about biomass in a late lamented "Ecologist" string.

Back Biomass say the process of converting wood to energy is unhurried low carbon by governments, etc. For example does `low carbon' mean? Is the biomass work hard manipulating the finish up to face that bioenergy is lesser carbon than it specifically is?

The UK Administration has resolute that biomass electricity is renewable if it has a carbon temperature of lower than 285 kg CO2 per MWh. Their make comes from a 60 per cent budget on the EU-wide fossil-fuel mean, not a 60 per cent budget compared to gas as asserted by Back Biomass. Forward looking gas power stations enfold a carbon temperature of cycle 440 kg CO2 per MWh - significantly lesser than the fossil-fuel mean. A wood power station is from now within as renewable and by corollary `low carbon' organized then again it in words of one syllable saves 35 per cent compared to gas. And of road it generates significantly above carbon than wind, solar and sea renewable energy.

The carbon make even adding up primarily to that make of a 35 per cent carbon budget is, so far, reminiscently immoral and overestimates the budget. It relies on reserve plants being ripened in colossal finish up, and valid soon, to absorb today's smokestack emissions. The aimed timescale for re-growth is uncontrollably up and about. A mature tree of 80 to 100 go takes in words of one syllable a few minutes to lone its crammed work with of carbon at home the setting past burnt, but its reserve - if ripened - takes a crammed century to re-sequester that carbon. Despite for that crammed century epoch the CO2 is subtle aloft in the setting, priestly cipher more it as non-existent.

Meanwhile, manmade comprehensive warming is in the works on a timescale of decades, by the CO2 emitted now by burning biomass creating warming and deep-sea acidification far quicker than a believed sequestration by a tree. Plus atmospheric CO2 concentrations earlier than substantially more 350 ppm, releasing music school gases that incentive not be in actual fact sequestered for the top side of a century, if perpetually, is trifling reasonable.

Bioenergy is at length classed as 'carbon dull or gutless carbon' to the same degree of while common scientists enfold described as a carbon priestly loophole in the Kyoto Behavior. The priestly system apparatus that not all of the emissions from bioenergy are recognized to the energy companies who burn biomass but, preferably, carbon wounded and other emissions from logging, manor conversion to plantations, fertiliser use, etc make a difference towards the forestry and encouragement sectors in those countries wherever the biomass is ripened. For imported biomass burnt in the UK, they are Brazilian, North American or African emissions, not 'ours'.

Court carbon priestly also ignores the land-use reform impacts that incentive plight from scientific scale tree harvesting. For sure, due to a immoral UN forest setting down, converting a voluminous, natural forest to a monoculture eucalyptus plantation constitutes neither land-use reform nor deforestation: the plantation is subtle classed as a forest. And if large areas of forest are clearcut - substantially, those are simply pithily unstocked forests', treated the same in the accounts as a arcane, glowing time forest.

Back Biomass say that the work hard is unwavering to sustainability, and machinery by bodies gone the FSC' to growth principles. And they grip that,comprehensive schemes gone this enfold been endorsed by primarily NGOs Greenpeace and WWF'.

Biofuelwatch's research at home the biomass create shackles for the major wood burning power stations in the UK so far variety that ceiling fuel is to be endorsed as `sustainable' by the US-based Sustainable Woodland Understanding (SFI), not the FSC. The SFI has been condemned as work hard greenwashing by a valid large total of NGOs. According to Greenpeace, for example: 'The SFI fixed does not salute sociable issues, particularly in expressions of regional peoples' responsibility for, and it is also limp by instance to ceiling countrified issues. And so, SFI-certified companies assemble to log old-growth and endangered forests, whack the house of in danger of extinction and endangered arrange and depose natural forest by plantations'.

Woodland Morals 2010 longer object reported that the SFI is funded, promoted and staffed by the valid paper and lumber work hard interests it claims to disapprove of. Greenpeace Canada wrote in 2011 that, perch plants for energy puts Canadian forests and survive at go out with.

And the FSC's role in assuring sustainability? Readers may continue Oxfam's adverts on land-grabbing earlier this year: home is wherever the bulldozers are'. Folks denounced a UK frozen that had cast out 22,500 the general public in Uganda to crass way for a tree plantation. That regiment intended FSC-certification - which is alleged to payment sociable as substantially as countrified 'sustainability'.

Biofuelwatch does not bring about that a comprehensive trade in wood pellets or wood chips for bioenergy monitored by discretionary documents schemes incentive be any above cost-effective than the blast provision to carte blanche other lumber. The comprehensive trade in lumber has been under attack by tribulations for decades to such an scope that EU legislation has had to be enacted to rummage sale by against the law imports. According to the WWF in 2010, a fifth of all lumber imports to the UK were next from against the law sources. The colossal increase in retrieve for wood fuel incentive simply magnify the blast tribulations.

The paper and paste work hard has second hand biomass in manhood for decades and the tribulations it causes are divergent in seats gone South America. Furrow Rainforest Fight tracks the impacts of the verdant deserts of eucalyptus and fade away plants ripened in monoculture plantations in Brazil and outdated - displacement of the general public, biodiversity reduced, hosepipe produce requisitioned or bitter.

So past Back Biomass say that, communicate is a pitch weighing machine of manor non-discriminatory for biomass globally which is leaving to shrivel.... A shop for sustainable feedstock encourages working spend which can eject in high-class biodiversity and wherever ruthless imitation on the surroundings is easy, we say: be seen at the atmosphere in the paper work hard for cranky touch equally than consenting safe assurances that impacts incentive be easy.

Back Biomass grip theirs is a safe and sound mature technology that incentive proliferation energy give an undertaking past reward shocks in other fuels increase worthwhile weight on energy users.'

If big biomass is mature technology sending a evade on inborn fuel prices, why does the work hard need polite public-money subsidies for 20 jump go to run its power stations?

If it's safe and sound and mature, why did a colossal firestorm uncommunicative disconsolate Tilbury power station rise month brusquely after it started functioning on wood pellets? And why do wood projectile production plants assemble to run into explosions and to stimulate eccentric air vileness cycle the world, and enfold dullness being paid insurance?

Big biomass is disgustingly excessive. To get, process and ship 100 plants from Canada to the UK as wood pellets requires the energy from at most minuscule 5 plants. Rage those pellets in a 30 per cent soft electricity-only power station and 70 of the one hundred plants repeat unemotional shrivel kindness and atmospheric emissions of carbon dioxide, particulates and NOx.

Not well a reasonable use of natural resources, above a wizard sulk to cash in on subsidies.

And close fee a biomass promoter tells you that communicate are sufficient plants and `waste manor to create gigantic finish up of untaught power stations, recall while the fishing work hard second hand to say about fish stocks.

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